THE FOLLOWING are the main players in protests in Thailand over calls for the premier to step down:
Somchai Wongsawat
Prime minister and brother-in-law of ousted leader Thaksin Shinawatra, Somchai is a former appeal court judge who became prime minister in September after his predecessor, Samak Sundaravej, was removed by the constitutional court for hosting cooking shows while in office.
His close relationship with Thaksin has led to charges of nepotism, which he denies.
Gen Anupong Paochinda
Commander-in-chief of the Thai army, Anupong was a leading member of the junta behind the 2006 coup that deposed Thaksin Shinawatra. He has declined to use force to clear protesters off the streets of Bangkok, fearing mass bloodshed. His call for fresh elections on Tuesday was seen by many as openly tilting the army's sympathy towards the protesters from the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD). Anupong has insisted that a coup will not resolve the country's problems. He is said to be a Beatles fan and a keen drummer.
King Bhumibol Adulyadej
The king is the world's longest- serving head of state, having ascended to the throne in June 1946. He is credited with being a restraining influence on the military, helping to steer the country's transition to democracy in the 1990s and supposedly heading off several coups. He has been a significant presence behind the scenes, persuading rival politicians to negotiate. The yellow shirts worn by PAD protesters are a sign of loyalty to the crown.
Thaksin Shinawatra
The former prime minister, a former police colonel from Chiang Mai, set up one of Thailand's first mobile telephone networks, growing the family fortune to an estimated €1.6 billion. He founded Thai Rak Thai (Thais Love Thais) and was swept into office in 2001 with the first absolute majority in Thai history, but was overthrown by a coup on September 19th, 2006, while attending a UN meeting in New York.
He then lived in exile in a mansion in Surrey, and later in a rented flat in Park Lane, London. In 2007, he bought Manchester City FC for £81.6 million (€97.5 million). This month, the UK withdrew the visas of Thaksin and his wife after they were convicted of corruption by Thailand's supreme court. He now lives in the Middle East.
Two leading protesters
There are nine prominent personalities at the head of the PAD, which wants the overthrow of the government. Of these, Maj Gen Chamlong Srimuangled mass street protests against a military-backed government in 1992, which prompted the last major crackdown by the Thai army. A former governor of Bangkok, he is a devout Buddhist who is reported to be celibate and to have renounced all worldly possessions. Sondhi Limthongkulis a former journalist and media owner who long ago fell out of sympathy with Thaksin. He has been accused of using his newspapers as a personal mouthpiece for his political views. - ( Guardianservice)